European officials today hit back furiously at David Cameron’s claim they are overpaid.

They claimed they were worse off than some UK civil servants. In a rebuttal circulated to British reporters, they said their wages lost 7.4 per cent of “purchasing power” in recent years and they had increased their hours from 37.5 to 40 per week.

They claimed Whitehall officials could put in just 36 hours and had only lost 3.2 per cent of their purchasing power.

“Average salaries are higher than national ones,” the officials conceded in a rebuttal sheet sent to UK reporters at the summit.

“But there are several good reasons for that.”

It cited the requirement to speak three or more languages fluently and to move families abroad in many cases.

It was harder for spouses to find work in Brussels because people were expected to speak French and Dutch, as well as English, meaning two-earner families could struggle to make ends meet.

Moreover, Commission officials were fewer in number, older, usually more experienced and had more responsibility.

In any case, it claimed, the highest paid Brussels salary, European officials today hit back furiously at David Cameron’s claim they are overpaid.at €16,919 a month, was dwarfed by the €25,000 per month pay of Britain’s top paid officials.